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Eamonn’s Bar & Grill – Midtown, NYC

I had the distinct pleasure to sit down with Hot N’ Saucy Wings Editor N’ Chief DJ on his recent visit to New York City. Our visit was short, but we had just enough time to catch up over a drink on a late Monday night…and of course sample some wings.

Eamonn’s is a standard Midtown Pub. Thin and deep, with a simple bar running along the left wall, backed by a curt but courteous male bartender. There was a decent crowd for the time, and I wondered how many were out-of-towners staying in nearby hotels, like my companion.

We ordered buffalo wings, hot. They came out surprisingly quickly…though I probably need to chalk that up to time flying amidst good company. As you can see in the picture, the wings were a deep, rich burnt umber. I thought, ‘uh-oh, these aren’t going to be a traditional buffalo wing at all.’ We both took our first bite at the same time, me expecting a sweet, molasses flavor.

And sweet they were…at first bite. But very quickly came a swooshing burst of hot sauce heat. We both froze at the same moment, trying to make sense of the peculiar shift in flavor.

The wings had two distinct personalities, a sweet, thick BBQ flavor and an oil-thin & flavorless heat. Unfortunately, these two flavors never merged in my mouth. Or even on the plate, for that matter; we could see the sauce separating into the two parts I described before our very eyes!

I want to be clear that the wings weren’t all bad. Spicy BBQ, hard to go too wrong. The thickness of the sauce was enjoyable, and the wings, though devoid of any crisp due to the sauce, were cooked to perfection. DJ noted that there were no fatty areas under the skin, which is half the battle of a good wing.

I also enjoyed the small serving. In a city where I’ve grown accustomed to paying $8-10 for 12 wings, minimum, and order of 6 wings is a perfect snack. NYC establishments take note, even this wing nut will refrain from an order when only peckish and faced with a dozen wings.

The bleu cheese dressing was probably right out of a tub, but had the appropriate levels of flavor, chuncks, cooling, etc. Though I could have used much more heat from these ‘hot’ wings…they hardly needed any cooling at all!

So the wings were passable. I’d get them again if I frequented this bar for some reason. But a wing destination, Eamonn’s is not. But it was a pleasure to share them with DJ!